Imaginer

Deleted Scenes: Where Boy is Frustrated

            Jacoby’s arms retracted and he tipped me off his lap. I tumbled forward and barely managed to steady myself. “Hey!”

            “Figure it out on your own, Jasslyn. You should know that I’m not used to dealing with emotions,” he said, clearly irritated at how far I had pushed him. He got up off of his bed and slipped his dirty shoes back on. He set his gift down on the desk with a clunk. The room suddenly felt so cold after he had left.

            I stared at the globe and got up slowly to retrieve it. I sat back down on his bed and cradled it between my cupped hands. I murmured to it.

            “You’ve caused more trouble than he would have wanted, didn’t you?”

            The lily hmph’ed and closed its petals, shrinking back into an unopened blossom. It wouldn’t open no matter how many times I ran my fingers over the glass.

            After setting it down on the mattress and lying down next to it, I began to contemplate the strangeness of this gift. Imaginers were the ones that could control plants, make them respond to their emotions. So what was I doing with this stubborn little Jacoby-like lily?

            “Jacoby kind of gave me a little bit of his Imaginer power, right?” I asked the lily. It didn’t reopen its petals, but it shifted slightly. “You can answer me, can’t you?” I asked softly.

            “Mhmm.”

            I laughed. “So you weren’t ignoring me?” I asked quietly, covering the lily with my palm. I was starting to feel a certain fondness towards the flower.

            It bloomed shyly then, tentatively peeking at me. As I grinned, it opened its petals wide, revealing the special blue streaks on its throat.

            “I’ve always thought it was a pretty shade of blue,” I murmured, wishing I could reach through the glass and give the lily a gentle stroke. I picked up the globe carefully and cupped it between my hands again. I brought it up to my face and rested my cheek against it. “You’re a pretty lily.”

            The lily sighed and grew slightly, stretching up to meet my fingers. It made a nuzzling motion and if the wind suddenly blew in the other direction, the same silly grin would have been frozen on my face forever.

            “I didn’t get to say thank you to Jacoby yet.” The smile faded slightly from my face and I sighed and lay back on his bed, stretching my arms out in front of me. “I wonder if he can hear what I’m saying to you right now,” I said to myself, but also to the lily.

            When it did not move, I brought it to my face again and—feeling very ridiculous—pressed a kiss to the surface.

(**A/N: Warning! These will not come in order, and for some I don't even remember where they were supposed to go. This out-take however, describes how Jacoby would've reacted if Jasslyn had played dumb in response to the "You know what the lilies stand for" comment back in Chapter 59, the really sappy romantic chapter. More to come!)